As people age or are deconditioned (out of shape), as is common in our society, they become more prone to exercise and repetitive motion related injuries. These injuries cause a great deal of pain and can interfere with a person's ability to function in their daily life, including loss of work time. Lateral Epicondylitis, also known as Tennis Elbow, is the term used to describe an inflammation occurring close to the humerus, a small point of the upper arm bone just above the elbow joint on the outer side of the arm. Pain can also arise in other areas of the forearm and elbow. The inflammation from tennis elbow is caused by two tendons rubbing against each other. Tendons are strong bands of tissue that connect muscle to bone. When repeatedly stressed or overused, tendons can become inflamed resulting in a painful condition called tendonitis, which can occur in tendons all over the body.
There are two common treatments for tennis elbow. One is to have a band on the forearm for compression 200 to dampen repetitive stress on the muscles and tendons. The other is to have alternating warm and cold therapy to reduce the inflammation. Commonly, the compression bands 200 is positioned either too tightly or too loosely. If the band 200 is too tight, it can restrict circulation and cause numbness. If the band is too loose, it loses its effectiveness and can even fall off. Typically, when people are first introduced to the compression band 200 treatment, they tend to over tighten the bands with the expectation of curing the condition faster. The resulting numbness can be uncomfortable and delay the healing effect of the band. Furthermore, the bands can become uncomfortable in summer months because too much heat is retained between the skin and the band.
Alternatively, hot and cold treatment typically requires two separate devices: ice packs alternating with heating pads. Although an effective treatment option, ice packs and heating pads are typically cumbersome to hold in place. With this approach, people cannot easily move around, but instead must sit and wait while receiving treatment. Gel packs may simplify treatments as they are able to retain heat and can provide cold to a treatment spot, however patient movement is still limited. To address these limitations, arm, leg, torso, and shoulder bands are now available in which the patient can apply gel packs that have been either heated or cooled to a desired treatment area. However, a limitation with this system is that gel packs do not maintain the treatment temperature for long periods of time.